Dried Mushroom Powder
If you get lucky and find a surplus of mushrooms, dehydrating & powdering them is a great way to preserve them- it’s shelf stable and saves space. We dehydrate most of the choice mushrooms we don't plan on eating right away, but we’ll also dehydrate any less-choice ends and woodier bits. These less appetizing pieces we dry for use as a mushroom powder, as they’ll still be just as tough when rehydrated.
Mushrooms are full of earthy umami flavor, and some mushrooms, fresh or dehydrated, just aren't that great eaten whole due to texture. Pheasant backs are a perfect example of this. The tender outside edges make great table fare, but the dense centers and stems are not all that fun to eat. By powdering the dehydrated mushroom, we maximize space savings and have a versatile ingredient to add earthy flavors to various dishes.
Stocks, soup, and broths are the first to come to mind. The powder can be strained out with a fine chinois or left in depending how you want the mouthfeel of the end product to be. We’ll add the mushroom powder to hearty stews to add depth. It’s also great in a homemade miso soup. We’ve mixed it with black garlic as a spice rub for venison racks, added it to a savory, herb-y bread, and added it into pasta dough.
Dried Mushroom Powder
Prep time: 8 hours, mostly to dry. 5 minutes active time
Method:
Dehydrate the mushroom pieces. We find it easiest to cut them down to similar sizes so they dry evenly. 1-2” segments dry fast and they fit nicely into our blender for powdering. Dry at 125-130F for around 8 hours depending on the size of mushrooms. You can't really over dry them if you plan on grinding them to a powder, so we usually just run the dehydrator overnight.
Once you have the mushrooms dried, you'll need to grind them into a powder. We use a Weston Pro blender and utilize the grain setting. A grain mill, coffee grinder or spice mill will also do the trick.
